Hello Natalia, can you tell us a little bit about you and how you got into photography?I was born in Caracas, Venezuela. When I was 19 I moved to Arizona where I studied fine arts at Arizona State University. The work I did while in art school was multidisciplinary and, in most cases, it included video as well as performance art. My interest in photography developed soon after I moved to London.

How did you get involved with street photography?Two circumstances led me to get involved in street photography. In 2011 I moved to London; a place I had never been before and where I knew very few people. It was also around this time when I received a gift from my mother: an Olympus OM-1 camera that had belonged to her since 1976. So, without having planned it, I had acquired all the necessaries for this type of art practice: solitude, a camera and a new city to explore.

Most of your work are street portraits… What do you like about photographing people?I truly enjoy observing people’s engagement with the details of their everyday routine. A person’s expressions and habitual gestures are, to me, a gateway to that something hidden underneath our character and personality.

Your street portraits are characterized by their very minimal composition and intimate moments. How did you come up with it?There is an intriguing and haunting trait that seems to emerge when someone is in a state of waiting (i.e. at a bus stop, waiting for someone/something to arrive or, just simply, gazing into the distance). These brief reveries are, perhaps, one of the few instances when a person’s essence is unveiled. I continue to be fascinated by observing these moments and, by photographing them, I wish to exalt the inner life of people.

When you are out shooting, how much is instinctual versus planned?At the moment my work is guided by instinct and chance. The only planning I do involves choosing a location (a street or a neighborhood) and the time of day. This approach has been, for an over-thinker like me, quite a freeing and enjoyable experience. By not setting a particular goal, and without the need to achieve any type of objective, I have been able to focus on observation—something I feel has helped me create a visual language of my own.

Most street photographers shoot in B&W - you shoot in color - can you explain us why?This has been choice based purely on instinct. I enjoy seeing the play of colours created by the juxtaposition of reflections and don’t think B&W is capable of producing the same effect.

If you had the chance to go on a photowalk with a famous photographer, who would it be and why?Saul Leiter. He was a remarkable photographer with an interesting and wholehearted personality.

What and who inspires you? I am, for the most part, inspired by films. The works of Maya Deren, Stanley Kubrick and Béla Tarr (to name a few) have helped me understand the importance of seeing and framing an image with a meticulous and attentive eye.

What are your next plans?I am currently in the process of finding opportunities to train as a cinematographer. The combination of my work as a photographer, my love of cinema, and the urge to learn a new skill has prompted this new creative search.